Anyone who works in retail knows that life isn’t always spent behind a till. Grand openings, redesigns and on-site consultations lead to an increasingly hectic life.
Month: May 2019
One tool streamlines the inevitable month end rush for Finance Teams
Were all looking to run leaner businesses, and the digital world has created opportunities for us to do so – through tools and programmes that bring more clarity into operations. Youre able to use data to measure nearly every part of your business which leads to more informed decisions. The caveat is, sometimes were faced with too much information, coming from many different sources – that it can take more time to interpret it, that the costs can outweigh the benefits. Thats exactly what its like at the end of every month in the finance department. The biggest issue typically is getting information fast, from multiple departments, particularly business travel expenses.
Why business travel management agencies cost you in more ways than one
Business travel management is a lot like riding a bicycle. When you figure out how to do it right, you’ll never need a refresher; but until then, you’ll need stabilisers. Perhaps that’s why business travel management agencies have become so popular in industries like construction, where specialised workforces and competing deadlines fuel Excel-filled nightmares. Handing off the nitty-gritty of it all to someone else? Sometimes, it doesn’t sound like that bad of an idea. Agencies say they’ll book the business hotels and enforce the travel and expense policies down to a tee, but is handing it all off to them the right thing to do? We’ll put it another way for you: would you ride your bike down a hill without holding on to the handle bars? The disadvantages to outsourcing business travel management When you hand over control of your business travel management programme to an agency, it’s for good reason at the outset. Cost savings, policy enforcement and better quality business hotel bookings right? But there’s more to it than meets the eye. Let’s start with the savings; the holy grail of outsourcing. Agencies spend the time gathering the deals and pass on the savings to their clients, but that’s not what happens behind the scenes. First and foremost, the organisations aren’t always able to get deals in the locations clients need. The misstep results in costs that are on par with what you would’ve paid beforehand, except you’re coughing up for their outsourcing fee on top of it. Agencies don’t always get the best deals and all too often, they’ll get the same deals you have available to yourself. While you get the cost of your time back, it doesn’t really make it a viable option for saving money. While outsourcing business travel management will lead to a much higher percentage of travel and expense policy enforcement, there’s a cost to this as well. Large companies in industries like construction, where projects and priorities can change swiftly, will find that they can’t make adjustments to the policy on a wide scale. As we all know, some periods are busier than others or offer a windfall of greater cash flow. Having a static policy can mean missed opportunities in terms of savings or getting workers better rooms and locations. Last but certainly not least in the minds of your workforce is the quality of the rooms that are being booked. Are they in the right location? Does the service account for feedback from workforce travel? Saving money and enforcing policies is all good and well until senior leadership is upset and employee morale is freefalling. The advantages to bringing business travel management back in-house Business travel management doesn’t have to be on a scale that balances crippling stress and outsourcing; there’s a middle ground. Business hotel booking platforms are one of the ways that travel bookers are taking back control of the process. All-in-one business hotel booking platforms like Roomex let companies search, book and manage their workforce travel accommodations with ease. It’s all the power of an agency from a web browser. Most importantly, it brings together the best rates on over 1.2 million hotels globally to help organisations save up to 21 percent on hotel bookings. Control isn’t overlooked either. Travel bookers are able to set and enforce travel and expense policies and gather real-time reports on spend, which allows them to adjust the criteria on the fly to maximise the value the programme brings to the business. The quality of the hotel rooms that are being booked can’t be forgotten because at the end of the day, it’s the employees who benefit from great workforce travel. With over 1.2 million hotels available at the click of a button, travel bookers have no issues finding the best room in the right location at the lowest rate. While companies may lose the ability to hand work off to business travel management agencies if they stop working with them, that loss if offset by a windfall of benefits. Greater control over the process, better quality rooms and savings that can be felt on the bottom-line. How could you say no? Are you looking to streamline your company’s business travel management? Get in touch with one of our experts today to learn how Roomex can help.
Build high morale with your construction workforce with these 3 tips
There’s hardly an industry where retention isn’t a common topic among senior leadership, but it’s nothing short of a burning issue in markets that rely on highly skilled staff to function. Construction companies know the debates around it all too well. In a sector where it can be difficult to create a culture of employee engagement, it’s not uncommon to find low morale as a challenge. Outside influences due to workforce travel, like poor accommodations and lengthy time away from family, can amplify these effects tenfold. There’s good news though: there’s something your company can do about it. Here are three ways your team can improve engagement and build up morale: 1. Look to high performers for inspiration There’s something to be said about learning from the best. Sure, you might be able to come up with a ground-breaking strategy on your own (and we definitely believe that you can), but it also doesn’t hurt to install some tried and true methods that will bring a return on retention in the meantime. High-retention construction firms are relying on three methods more so than the average company to improve employee engagement and keep their staff, according to the FMI Talent Development Survey: Coaching; Formal in-house classroom training; Frequent informal feedback. What’s the common thread between these three practices? They show that the businesses are invested in the personal and professional lives of their staff. While you yourself may not always be able to implement these changes, find people who hold retention in high regard and work with them to introduce the ideas. There’s a seemingly endless number of opportunities available now with nearly nine in every 10 companies facing a talent shortage, according to the survey. Compensation has turned into a bare minimum and an emphasis on the wellbeing of a person as opposed to being just another face in the crowd is a powerful motivational tool. 2. Take the stress out of workforce travel Business travel has its charm at first, but extended time on client sites can chip away at anyone’s morale when they’re away from family and home. When the accommodations are less than ideal and a sizable distance from the job site resulting in an extra couple of hours being tacked onto the work day without pay stress levels can run high. Construction companies that frequently manage workforce travel should look at how they can improve all aspects of the experience for their staff. Here are a few questions to keep in mind to help you evaluate your own programme: Are you able to book high-quality hotel rooms within the price range of your travel and expense policy? Are employees bogged down by the amount of expense tracking needed to avoid being left out of pocket? How easy is it for the travel booker to manage the large amount of bookings in a timely and efficient manner? All of these concerns can contribute to a workforce travel programme that creates more issues than it solves. Many organisations are turning to a business hotel booking platform to streamline the process. By being able to search, book and manage over 1.2 million hotels from one location, travel bookers are able to get quality accommodations that are close to job sites (and save in the process thanks to pre-negotiated rates). Similarly, burdensome expenses are taken off employees plates thanks to a single line of credit that allows the company to file one invoice at the end of each month. Sometimes, the most powerful employee engagement tactics are the ones that let the staff focus on their work, rather than stress about the aspects of it that are outside of their control. 3. Stay transparent in everything you do Here’s something that’s easier said than done: be transparent. In career development, compensation, work scheduling, professional feedback and workforce travel; everything should be laid out on the table for your team. Improving engagement and employee morale is largely about understanding the issues that affect work performance. Creating an open culture is critical in understanding these barriers and figuring out the solutions that will break them down. Are you looking to streamline your company’s business hotel bookings? Get in touch with one of our experts today to learn how Roomex can help.
How Amanda Taylor of Lush Cosmetics Manages Business Travel
Background In retail, its all about the store, its people, and its products. LUSH Cosmetics has been known over the last 25 years as the leader in handmade cosmetics – famous for its innovative products and interactive stores. In the U.K. alone, they operate 106 shops. Since the business requires constant travel both in the U.K. and around the world – they turn to Amanda Taylor to manage hundreds of accommodations a month.
How to improve employee engagement with your travelling workforce
Revenue might be the one thing that keeps a company’s doors open but its people are still its most valuable asset. Keeping your staff involved and engaged is key to a productive company and it’s easy to feel involved if all your staff are onsite, but road warriors or engineers or travelling team members can often feel left out, which can lead to low employee engagement levels. This ultimately ends up hurting the business in more ways than one: an actively disengaged team member can cost the company 34 percent of their salary every year, a Gallup study found. Identifying causes of poor employee engagement levels, implementing long-term fixes and leveraging the right digital platforms to do so is an art in itself.
